A little over eight months after Japan's devastating earthquake and tsunami, which saw tourist arrivals in the country plummet, Chinese tourists are set to buoy the hard-hit Japanese tourism industry this winter.

His NBA career may have come to an end, but the Chinese basketball star Yao Ming isn't taking retirement lightly.

F1 looks to be attracting not only watchmakers and producers of high-end leathergoods, it's becoming a target for auction houses eager to sell some of their best diamonds to key clienteles.

Undeterred by astronomical membership fees, China's new wealthy have often become the country's new golfers, following their counterparts in Japan and South Korea and often choosing the links as the preferred spot for business meetings and deal-making.

In Shanghai this week for the FINA World Championships, at the OMEGA flagship on the Bund, Phelps posed for photos, autographed Seamaster Planet Ocean collection boxes, and remarked on his relationship with the watchmaker.